Country history · Asia

History of Malaysia

33 recorded states lay in what is now Malaysia, from Langkasuka (100 CE) to Malaysia. 4 of them have a full profile, and 11 outside powers ruled here.

ProfileState (capital or seat)4 without a known seat not shownOpen in the atlas →

Profiles

Empires that ruled here

Timeline

2nd century

  1. Langkasuka100 CE – 1474 CE · kingdom

3rd century

  1. Gangga Negara200 CE – 1025 CE · kingdom

4th century

  1. Old Kedah300 CE – 1136 CE · kingdom

6th century

  1. Chi Tu550 CE – 650 CE · kingdom

12th century

  1. Kedah Sultanate1136 CE – present · sultanate

14th century

  1. Brunei Sultanate1368 CE – present · profile

15th century

  1. Malacca Sultanate1400 CE – 1511 CE · sultanate
  2. Sulu Sultanate1405 CE – 1915 CE · profile
  3. Old Pahang Sultanate1470 CE – 1623 CE · sultanate

16th century

  1. Portuguese Malacca1511 CE – 1641 CE · colony
  2. Johor Sultanate1528 CE – present · profile
  3. Perak Sultanate1528 CE – present · sultanate

17th century

  1. Dutch Malacca1641 CE – 1825 CE · colony

18th century

  1. Terengganu Sultanate1708 CE – present · sultanate
  2. Kelantan Sultanate1762 CE – present · sultanate
  3. Selangor Sultanate1766 CE – present · sultanate
  4. Pahang Sultanate1770 CE – present · sultanate
  5. Negeri Sembilan1773 CE – present · other
  6. Prince of Wales Island1786 CE – 1826 CE · colony

19th century

  1. Straits Settlements1826 CE – 1946 CE · colony
  2. Raj of Sarawak1841 CE – 1946 CE · kingdom
  3. Perlis1843 CE – present · kingdom
  4. Crown Colony of Labuan1848 CE – 1906 CE · colony
  5. North Borneo1881 CE – 1946 CE · protectorate
  6. Federated Malay States1895 CE – 1946 CE · protectorate

20th century

  1. Unfederated Malay States1909 CE – 1946 CE · protectorate
  2. Japanese occupation of British Borneo1941 CE – 1945 CE · other
  3. Japanese occupation of Malaya1942 CE – 1945 CE · other
  4. Crown Colony of North Borneo1946 CE – 1963 CE · colony
  5. Crown Colony of Sarawak1946 CE – 1963 CE · colony
  6. Malayan Union1946 CE – 1948 CE · colony
  7. Federation of Malaya1948 CE – 1963 CE · other
  8. Malaysia1963 CE – present · profile

In the encyclopedia

Shared histories

States that also lay in other present-day countries:

States of Maritime Southeast Asia → States of Mainland Southeast Asia → All country histories →

Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). History of Malaysia. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/countries/malaysia
MLA
“History of Malaysia.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/countries/malaysia. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “History of Malaysia.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/countries/malaysia.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘History of Malaysia’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/countries/malaysia (Accessed: ).